I love Jesus, but not my wife.

Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? James 3:11

I am sick and tired of hearing Pastors and Church Leaders take aim at their biggest and most important supporters, just to appear clever and humorous!

Today I listened to a Lead Pastor being interviewed in front of a group of other Pastors and wannabe Pastors. Twice the lead Pastor disparaged his wife in front of the group during the introduction.

Question: You and your wife have done a lot in your life?
Lead Pastor: My wife is very old! (Hinting he was younger than his wife.)
Group: Chuckle, chuckle.

Q: How long have you been married?
LP: 18 years, but it feels like 50!
G: Chuckle, chuckle.

Here’s what scares me. People trust what Pastors say about God. People listen to Pastors when they speak about Scripture. They believe what they are told by Pastors about sin, forgiveness and Jesus. So why would it be any different when the Pastor is taking about his wife?

Do you really expect me to listen to you talk about your love for Jesus, when you just made fun of your wife, whom you are supposed to love too?

Why are wives such easy targets for Pastors?

This is not the first time I have heard Preachers do this.

Before Debra and I were married we went to a one-night marriage seminar at her church. The keynote speaker spoke directly against using your spouse as a target for humor and jokes, especially in front of other people. "Good point," I thought. It is humiliating, disrespectful and does not express love. So, what did the Pastor of the church do when he got up right after the speaker…he cracked a joke about wife!

I was sitting there thinking: 1. “Wow, that was a cheap shot.” 2. “Wasn’t he listening?”

Now, do I think the Lead Pastor today loves his wife? Sure. I get what he was trying to do. Was it a dumb thing to say just for a cheap laugh? Absolutely! Did it hurt his witness of Jesus? To me it did.

How can you love Jesus, if you don’t love/respect/treat with worth/defend your wife?